Article

IoD welcomes Government review into female business leaders

09 Nov 2016

In response to the launch of the Hampton-Alexander Review, Lady Barbara Judge, Chairman of the Institute of Directors and member of the Advisory Panel for the review, said:

“We welcome the focus in this report on getting more women not just onto boards, but onto the executive committees of large companies. We have long argued that focussing just on boards fails to build a sustainable pipeline of women leaders. Having a third of executive committees made up by women by 2020 is a very stretching target, and there will have to be sustained political and public pressure for this to be achieved. As the review suggests, there will need to be clear guidance on which executives qualify for the target, so that companies produce meaningful data. The emphasis on transparency is also to be commended, and will help sharpen minds of the nomination committee and senior executives to make sure there is a steady flow of female talent.

“The review is absolutely right to suggest investors have a greater role to play in putting pressure on companies to enable female promotion. If shareholders make clear that addressing the gender imbalance in boardrooms and senior executive teams is a high priority for them, companies will listen.

“There is no question that Britain’s boardrooms benefit when there are people from diverse backgrounds around the table, be that in terms of gender, age, or career background. The Government, through this review, has laid down an ambitious target, and it is one that the business community must work to achieve.”